Gov. Linda Lingle and Lt. Gov. James R. “Duke” Aiona, Jr. recently met with 25 hotel owners and operators from around the state to discuss collaborative short- and long-term efforts to get Hawai‘i’s tourism industry back on track.

The governor, who arranged the 90-minute meeting with the hoteliers, described the gathering as a positive and forward-looking discussion in which everyone focused on what key, aggressive steps can be taken to increase visitors and visitor spending both in the coming months, as well as in the long-term.

“We know from prior experience that the current slowdown in the visitor market will eventually turn around, but we don’t want to just wait for that to happen,” said Gov. Lingle. “We want to do something now, and I appreciate the hotel industry’s willingness to work together on finding innovative solutions to bolster our tourism market. Rather than dwell on the challenges facing the industry and our economy, these industry leaders are looking forward.”

A major focus of the discussions included earmarking more money for marketing. The governor and the hoteliers recommend the Hawai‘i Tourism Authority (HTA) reallocate an additional $10 million in HTA’s budget for that purpose.

“Investing in marketing our state’s visitor industry is crucial to conveying our message that Hawai‘i provides visitors with value,” said Gov. Lingle.  “This investment is not just about filling hotel rooms, but is critical to all other industries, including retail, restaurants, tour operators, car rental companies, visitor attractions, and the countless other businesses that rely on tourism. Investing in marketing Hawai‘i will result in increased revenue to the state and the bolstering of our economy.”

While most of the hotel properties indicated they were reaching out to the kama‘aina market with special rates and package deals, the general agreement during the meeting was the need to bring new money into the state.

As part of the marketing outreach, Gov. Lingle and Lt. Gov. Aiona are planning separate trips to Asia in November to promote Hawai‘i’s visitor industry, and there was discussion regarding similar trips to California.